


Progressive

by MidoriKurenaiYume



Category: Fate/Zero, Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Bodyguard, Dialogue, F/M, Feelings, Fluff and Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-12
Updated: 2017-12-12
Packaged: 2019-02-13 22:06:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12993501
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MidoriKurenaiYume/pseuds/MidoriKurenaiYume
Summary: Gilgamesh is a rich actor known for his remarkably arrogant roles. Arturia is his bodyguard.





	Progressive

**Author's Note:**

> Light-hearted and not to be taken too seriously :P
> 
> Title: from a Kalafina song, their 6th single and also part of the album 'Red Moon'. Credit goes to the canta-per-me forum for the lyrics' translation :)

… …

_~The truth of having a fickle heart crumbles in one of your tears~_

… …

His job as a famous actor had always been simple in his opinion, but the growing public attention towards it made it obvious that his personal safety was beginning to be at risk.

When he started thinking seriously about getting some reliable security, he gathered of course information first. He had heard of several groups that guaranteed safety, but the very best was a team led by someone called Saber and widely known as the ‘King’ of bodyguards.

That title intrigued Gilgamesh, especially when he found out that it had been chosen by others, not by the team itself, and most importantly, it wasn’t used with scorn or derisiveness, but with _respect_. The leader was rumoured to be highly skilled, professional and capable, and Gilgamesh approved the work ethics he seemed to have because, when he sent an email, the reply was a cautiously expressed interest in accepting, together with the request to meet in person before making a final decision.

When a small, rather harmless looking woman showed up, he thought she was the team’s manager or something like that. She had somewhat confirmed his assumptions by calmly stating the terms and conditions the bodyguards were going to have while illustrating what level of security they offered.

There was something very compelling about her; judging by her appearance alone, he would have said that she had something similar to the spirit of an unbeatable fighter, yet it was also as if she kept herself aloofly detached from everyone else at the same time.

It was fascinating to see someone so young and pretty be so serious when detailing protection plans. Gilgamesh was however surprisingly satisfied with what the team guaranteed; therefore, reaching an agreement wasn’t hard.

When she rose to leave, however, he finally inquired, “I’ve heard that the team’s leader, known as Saber, is sometimes referred to as ‘King’ of bodyguards.”

The woman seemed neither surprised nor uncomfortable, and merely gave a short nod and a cryptic sentence.

“I have indeed heard that such a term was used.”

He raised an eyebrow at that. Was she refusing to catch his meaning? He had clearly hinted that he wanted to meet this ‘King’, and she was not being cooperative.

Well then, maybe he was going to deign himself to elaborate.

“You requested a meeting with me in person. When will the team’s ‘King’ come to meet me then?”

Her eyes were inscrutable as she held his gaze firmly, before replying, in a carefully measured tone, “I already have.”

It took Gilgamesh all his experience as an actor to stop himself from dropping his mouth open in shock, but he still couldn’t hide his surprise completely. He was however quick in getting his composure back again, even as a strangely stifling silence stretched between them.

“I see,” he finally said, very slowly. Now this had been unexpected, and he couldn’t help studying the woman in front of him more keenly.

The signs he had noticed earlier had not been his imagination; she was indeed a fighter. He had the strange impulse to call himself a fool for making assumptions about her without his usual accuracy.

Upon meeting her, she had given him the impression of being very righteous; and since before accepting to work for him she had requested a meeting with him in person, he should have known that the leader of the team would show up in person as well.

A predictable move for an honourable person – yet Gilgamesh had failed to realize so immediately, and had dismissed her.

It was all this woman’s fault. She was too charmingly distracting for her own good.

And it only worsened as time passed, especially since he did indeed hire her and her team to work for him.

She was discreet and did her job admirably, but if she was in the room, he had trouble in keeping his eyes away from her for long.

It came to the point that, when he was on set for his movies, he specifically requested the presence of some other person from her team, as he wouldn’t have been able to keep his concentration if she was around.

… …

_~Where is the path you ran without looking back~_

… …

He sipped on his ever-present glass of wine, gazing at her thoughtfully.

She did her best to keep calm, collected and _professional_ under that intense scrutiny, wondering what had changed in him over the past three years.

Just a few months before, there had been an incident with Tokiomi Tohsaka, who had been his former manager. Given that his work had not been competent enough for Gilgamesh’s tastes, he had been dismissed, and that had made something snap in him. Gone completely mad after several unsuccessful tries of tarnishing Gilgamesh’s name and later taking credit himself for his fame, Tokiomi had made a desperate attempt at violently attacking the famous actor physically – but Arturia and her team had immediately neutralized the threat he posed, making sure he was arrested and convicted.

The incident had emphasized the importance of a tight security, and the bodyguards had taken it as such.

Every time Gilgamesh was on his own or meeting the few trusted friends he had or on set – so basically the entire time – his status as a world-wide famous star required for him to have a bodyguard. And, aside from when he was on set, he often picked _her_ among the team – in fact, he hardly ever had anyone else.

“The wine this place provides is excellent,” he suddenly commented, taking another generous sip.

Not believing it was a question yet not understanding why he bothered making such a comment when there was no one else around, she chose not to say anything. As she now so often did, she let her eyes pass over the room, especially focusing on the windows, scanning the familiar place in search of rather doubtful threats.

She could feel _his_ eyes on her, and turned a little to meet them, question clear in her own.

He seemed slightly exasperated and indicated the wine bottle. Only then did Arturia notice that there was a second glass next to it.

She narrowed her eyes almost imperceptibly. Her employer was quite the difficult man sometimes.

“Sir, if you are expecting a visitor today, you should have informed me so that there could be a higher level of security–”

She was cut off when he chuckled, and she was surprised at noticing the actual amusement in his expression.

“I am expecting no visitors, Saber.”

Her eyebrows knitted together in slight confusion, and he sighed. “The second glass is for _you_ , oblivious Saber.”

She blinked. She stared at the glass, and then back at him.

Finally finding her voice again, she said, “I thank you for the offer, but I don’t drink when I’m on duty.”

He lifted an eyebrow, seeming rather surprised that she had refused like that and without any hesitation.

He stood up, coming to stand in front of her and studying her face.

“You are my bodyguard, and you are turning down my wine?” His voice sounded incredulous.

She raised an eyebrow at him, unflinchingly holding his gaze.

“I am _one_ of your bodyguards,” she politely corrected him. “And I will not consume alcohol while doing my job.”

He inclined his head to the side, as if pondering over her words with actual seriousness. “And why would that be?”

She narrowed her eyes.

“Because it would be extremely unprofessional, aside from potentially dangerous for your safety.”

He didn’t seem to believe her, and indicated the wine glass.

“I am your employer, so what would happen if I were to _order_ you to drink this delicious wine?”

She held his gaze. “I already gave you my answer, and it wouldn’t change.”

Again he seemed surprised, and yet oddly even more intrigued. He went back to sit down on the couch, looking thoughtful. She remained standing in her position, not saying a word.

“Have you watched any of my movies, Saber?”

It was her turn to be surprised by the sudden change of topics and, after a second of hesitation, she replied, “A few of them.”

He smirked; this was going to be entertaining.

“No personal comments of yours on them?”

If he hadn’t been around her for quite a while, he would have missed the slight change in her expression that hinted at a ghost of what he astonishingly recognized as laughter.

“I do believe you pull off the arrogance in your every role rather effortlessly.”

Instead of being offended, he chuckled again. His bodyguard’s blunt irreverence was hilarious, but it would have been much better if, instead of being his detached bodyguard, she were his _wife_ …

While he was only too happy to have her constantly around him, it was frustrating to have her always be solely focused on her job and look at him only when she searched for threats. It had taken a while, but he was now certain of his desires.

Was it really too much to ask her to be his wife instead of his guardian?

The problem was, he had not yet told her such a thing. And from the way she had not understood his offer of wine as an excuse to spend unburdened time with her, it was rather clear that she was completely clueless about his growing, earnestly serious affections for her.

… …

_~The conflicts of yesterday were really sung~_

… …

He was her _employer_. The person her job required her to protect.

She had never been interested in watching movies in general, but for his safety, she had collected information on his roles to understand why some of his fans might become obsessed to the point of insanity.

Yet instead of just learning what she needed, she had not been able to stop herself from also becoming interested in his acting.

He was a rather conceited person, that was doubtless; however, he was also clever, and there was a certain allure to him, which made it so that, in every scene he appeared, he stole the show. Be it the mafia boss, the double agent, the rebel son, the casual customer at the bar, any role he played was simply mesmerizing. It was impossible to look away from the screen when he appeared on it.

No wonder he was so famous.

But she couldn’t be intrigued by him. She was his bodyguard, and her duty was to protect him. Fangirling was out of the question. Staring at him as well. Thinking about him too.

She would endure this. She _would_.

Especially because he so clearly seemed not to be very happy with her work. While he did request her presence very often when in safe environments, he had never allowed her to be his bodyguard when he was on set – and that was one of the places most at risk – which indicated he didn’t wish to have her around when he was in his element.

She couldn’t have a _crush_ on her employer. She had never had trouble in her former bodyguard jobs, therefore this unexpected distraction was an extremely unwelcome difficulty.

The only relief – or disappointment – she had was that their three-year working contract would end soon.

… …

_~We go on living in an illusion~_

… …

“Saber.”

She was about to leave, as her shift had just ended, but she paused when he called her.

“Yes, sir?”

He wasn’t looking at her, instead concentrating on the glass of wine he was twirling in his hand. He really liked his wine–

She shook herself. She should stop noticing so many inconsequential things about him, therefore she settled for simply waiting to see what he would say.

“You stop working for me in a week,” he observed, stating something that was rather obvious.

She gave a short nod. “That is correct.”

He put down his glass abruptly and turned his head to meet her eyes, giving her an unreadable stare, even if for just for a second.

“I’m looking forward to that moment.”

Arturia’s expression blanched, but she quickly put back a neutral mask. She was not going to show how much his blunt statement had affected her.

She didn’t give as much as a nod to acknowledge his words; she only turned around and left, without glancing back.

In a week, she was no longer going to be his bodyguard. In a week, she was going to see him for the very last time in a working environment. In a week, she was going to take her leave from him.

In a week, to her mortification, her foolish heart was going to break in half.

… …

_~For the first time we saw the rainbow~_

… …

Her last shift was going to end in a few minutes, precisely at midnight, but she was not going to let herself get distracted right now; she was going to do her duty until the end.

As Gilgamesh had already proved the week before, he was fully aware that it was her last moment of working for him. He had been glancing at the clock rather often, and seemed to expect midnight with impatience.

Arturia was glad that he couldn’t see how hurt she was feeling because of his behaviour.

He kept giving the clock a hard stare until the hand reached exactly the number twelve and, once it did, he caught her completely off guard when he stood up abruptly, walked to her, took her into his arms and passionately kissed her.

Arturia’s eyes widened in shock and her hands automatically went to his shoulders to push him away, in a gesture of self-defence.

Thankfully for _her_ mental health – and for _his_ physical health – he released her, a large grin on his face.

“I’ve been waiting for _months_ for you to no longer be working for me, only so that I could kiss you.”

Even as her heart was still beating incredibly fast, she narrowed her eyes. What on earth was this arrogant, conceited man–…!

She roughly pushed him away from her.

“You should not assume that you can do whatever you please!” came her angered reply.

He barely managed not to fall on the floor at her vehement reaction, and his expression was uncharacteristically serious as he observed her intently.

Finally, he sighed, as if – unwillingly – accepting defeat.

“Very well. I’ve been waiting for the end of your working contract to avoid creating conflicts of interests that you would have considered unacceptable. Now that there’s no longer that obstacle, won’t you let me kiss you, Sab– _Arturia_?”

She stared back at him, incredulous. How could he make it sound so casual, so easy, so… _simple_?

She was attracted to him, that was true, but he was her employer – _former_ employer – and she couldn’t just let him _kiss_ her like that.

Arturia shook her head, still disbelieving, but Gilgamesh took a calm step forward, seemingly able to read her mind.

“I see. You doubt my truthfulness. You believe I’m toying with you.”

She couldn’t deny his statement because, unfortunately, it was rather accurate, but she didn’t bother nodding. Her thoughts were reflected on her face far too clearly.

He seemed to ponder briefly, and then, appearing to suddenly change the subject, he asked conversationally, “Would a month from now be too soon?”

Confused, she eyed him questioningly.

“Too soon for what?”

“Our wedding,” he replied, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Dumbfounded, she could only stare at him, but when she realized that he was being perfectly earnest, she finally replied, with the flattest voice she was able to produce, “It would be far too soon indeed. Assuming you are serious in what you’re saying, asking me to marry you would mean–”

She stopped, her eyes widening in shock. _Oh_.

If he, someone who made a living in charming other people with mere words, was asking her to marry him, it meant that he was completely and utterly _serious_ about his intentions towards her.

Arturia blinked. As absurd as it sounded, she really hoped she wasn’t in the midst of a dream.

When she remained silent for a little too long, he inclined his head to the side and asked, completely straight-faced, “Would _two_ months be better then?”

She couldn’t help it – she chuckled lightly, because the situation was far too surreal.

Her life had been all rationality and order, her job taking over everything; yet right now, it wasn’t about her job.

Outside of that, while not having to be completely out of her mind, why couldn’t she take a chance, for once?

“I’m most certainly _not_ marrying you without knowing you well, so forget about two months,” she firmly stated. “However, I am not against forming a closer acquaintance with you, given proper time and space. Also…”

With his same calm tone and straight face, she finished, “…I don’t exactly mind kissing.”

… …

_~Beyond the rainbow drawn in the sky~_

… …

“So in the end, the ‘King’ of bodyguards ended up making me wait for _sixteen_ months.”

“Shut _up_.”

… …

_~Inside the light~_

… …


End file.
